Sleeping Beauty at The Orchard Theatre is one of the most polished, professional and breath-taking pantomimes I have seen in years. My third panto this year, and it is head and shoulders above the rest.
To begin with, the script is excellent, fast-paced and engaging, with the familiar moments you wish to see in a traditional pantomime, but without feeling stale or repetitive. The set is magical, vast and impressive and the costumes are intricate and beautiful. It was clear from the outset, that we were in the hands of experts in this field. Imagine Theatre clearly know what they are doing, and have very high standards. Director Michael Vivian, Choreographer Katherine Iles and Musical Director & Arranger Miles Russell are a dream team, they created pure Christmas magic on that stage.
The Star-Casting in the pantomime is exquisite. Having just recently watched another pantomime (I won't say where, but needless to say you would have to "chase" me to get that information from me) where the "Star" casting fell flat, and was not only wooden, but toe-curlingly awful, Imagine Theatre have achieved the opposite, and cast Sydnie Christmas, winner of Britain’s Got Talent, who not only lived up to the "hype" but added so much class, warmth, fun and joy to the panto, that I could even go as far as to say she shone. Her voice is stunning, her vocals are dynamic and heartfelt, and she brought a realness to the panto which was a joy to watch. This is star casting done well, and the audience were in the palm of her hand.
The entire cast were incredible. We were treated to the perfect leading lady in Lucy May Pollard as Princess Beauty, gutsy, friendly, fun and feisty, with strong vocals to match. She was paired up with the wonderful Cleve September as Prince Galileo who delivered some brilliant comic moments and their duets were stunningly delivered.
Simmons & Simmons, the father-son duo who played King and Chamberlain were brilliant! I loved the idea of a father-son dynamic in a pantomime and they delivered! Their comic timing, energy and clear love for the genre was beautiful to see, and they engaged with the audience in a professional and fun manner.
Now, onto my son's favourite character, Josh the Jester, played by Christian Lee. His magic was funny and clever, his jokes were hilarious and he won the hearts of the audience. As a trio with Simmons and Simmons they provided some of my favourite moments in the show, at points I had tears rolling down my face from laughing so much.
Larissa Alexandrovnia as Fairy Carabosse provided us with delightful baddie energy and a killer vocal, she had the perfect balance of nastiness and humour, and her timing was excellent.
My third panto of the season so far, and Sleeping Beauty at The Orchard Theatre is head and shoulders above the rest. The perfect family pantomime, filled with incredible songs, set and costumes and a cast so talented they will knock your socks off! If you only see one pantomime this year, it should be Sleeping Beauty at The Orchard Theatre.
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